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WIU Initiative for Social Justice Pedagogies Fall '21 Book Discussion

September 30, 2021

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MACOMB, IL – Western Illinois University's Initiative for Social Justice Pedagogies, led by Professors Rebekah Buchanan and James LaPrad, will host a book series discussion via Zoom throughout the fall semester, beginning Wednesday, Oct. 6.

The book series, which will focus on "Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom" by bell hooks, will meet from noon-1 p.m. via Zoom Wednesdays, Oct. 6, 13, 20 and 27. Individuals interested in participating must register at CITR@wiu.edu at least one hour prior to each session to obtain the Zoom link. The sessions are open to the public.

bell hooks, a writer, teacher and insurgent Black intellectual, writes about a new kind of education: education as the practice of freedom. According to hooks, teaching students to "transgress" against racial, sexual and class boundaries in order to achieve the gift of freedom is the teacher's most important goal.

According to Buchanan and LaPrad, hooks speaks to the heart of education today: how can we rethink teaching practices in the age of multiculturalism? What do we do about teachers who do not want to teach, and students who do not want to learn? How should we deal with racism and sexism in the classroom?

"To educate as the practice of freedom is a way of teaching that anyone can learn," hooks writes.

For more information, contact RJ-Buchanan@wiu.edu or JG-Laprad@wiu.edu.

Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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